Keep your dogs safe

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Dogs have been "man's best friend" for thousands of years. Since dogs watch over their owners, it's only right that dog-loving humans keep their pets safe in return. And now, dogs need our extra attention more than ever. With a little thought, you can easily create a safe home for your precious pups.

As you know, dogs have a keen curiosity. Take a look at your home from your puppy's perspective and you'll likely find all sorts of interesting items to check out. You may not realize that dogs first sniff, then mouth things to inspect them. So it's especially important that you keep the following out of your dog's reach:

• insect traps
  
• phone and electric cords
  
• ashtrays and cigarettes
  
• open doors and windows
  
• rubber bands
  
• housecleaning chemicals
  
• candles
  
• Christmas tree ornaments
  
• uncovered trash cans
  
• medications
  
• foodstuffs like: chocolate and grapes
  
• plastic bags
  
• batteries
  
• anti-freeze
  
• valuable items, like jewelry, photos, and books
  

Don't forget the great outdoors when inspecting your dog's area. Dogs, especially puppies, find plants fun playthings. They love to dig in the dirt or pull branches off shrubs. Because of this, make sure the plants in and around your home aren't a health risk to your dog. The following common house and garden plants are toxic to dogs:

• English ivy
  
• dieffenbachia
  
• mistletoe
  
• philodendron
  
• elephant ear
  
• caladium
  
• boxwood
  
• holly berry
  
• azaleas
  
• chinaberry trees
  
• oleander
  
• wisteria
  
• hydrangea

Other ways to protect your pup include keeping him or her safely confined to your home. Wandering dogs are more likely to be injured by vehicles or meet up with unkind people.

Make sure your yard is fenced and the fencing is tall enough and strong enough to keep your dog from roaming. Many dogs try to dig out under the fence, so it's crucial you regularly check for gaps around the fence perimeter. Teach everyone in your family to carefully close doors and keep gates latched.

Additionally, it's important that your pet wears a collar with an identification tag at all times, in the event he or she gets lost. In fact, most cities require that all dogs wear a collar and tag. This way, it's more likely your dog will be returned home safely to you. You may also consider microchipping, where a small silicone chip containing your contact information is painlessly inserted under the dog's skin. Most animal shelters and veterinarians automatically scan lost pets in search of a microchip. However, an identification tag will be useful if your puppy is found by an average citizen.

If you reside in an area prone to natural disasters, keep an emergency pet supply kit handy. Include a week's worth of food and water, as well as any medication your dog needs. Don't forget a photo of your pet too, in case you're separated at any time.

Choosing the right dog for you and your family

Dogs seek out people and take obvious pleasure in their company. They often fulfill a childlike role and are dependent in their owners for most of their life. This dependency works both ways and your dog becomes part of your family. It makes sense to try to match your lifestyle and preferences to the temperament and needs of the dog.

You may be looking for a dog with behavioral characteristics such as the ability to guard, herd, retrieve, or just sit on your lap. Other questions you’ll need to ask yourself are what age? size? sex? pure breed or not. For most pet parents, the age is considered first.

What age of dog? Of course, a puppy is delightful, especially if you’ve got children in the house, but there may be reasons why an older dog is better. If you’re looking for a good companion right from the start, a young adult dog may be best. A puppy requires someone around all day to properly house train and to develop a good relationship. If you choose an older dog, make sure it is house-trained, a dog that has been kenneled for a long time may not be.

Size is the next important consideration. Large breeds are both expensive to buy and to feed, they need a lot of space and a lot of exercise and aren’t well suited to city living in an apartment. Small and toy breeds need far less space and exercise, they eat less too! But you must take care with young children, as toy breeds bones are fine and fragile and children can accidentally hurt them seriously. Large breeds also age quicker than the smaller breeds and most don’t live beyond 14 years, while the smaller breeds can live to be 20 years old.

Male or female is the next consideration, and most owners have their own preferences. Females are usually more demanding of attention, but they are easier to train and develop a more solid attachment to their owners. Male dogs are usually more consistent in their temperament, but are more difficult to train due to their independent nature. Male’s may become so aggressive or wander so much that neutering is called for. This isn’t always successful and can change the dog’s character.

Pedigree or not? Non pedigree dogs sometimes called mongrels, have a lot in their favor. While they aren’t as predictable in terms of looks and temperament, they are much less afflicted by inherited diseases than pedigree dogs and seem to avoid some of the more common ailments. Pedigree dogs can develop ailments that are common to their breed that gets passed to each new generation. You should look into the “hereditary defects” of any pedigree you are considering. Most of these ailments don’t occur until the animal is old, but they will occur.

No matter what type, breed, age, size, color, or other choice of dog you make, just remember, they will all need part of your time and space. Owning a pet and becoming a good pet parent is a commitment, but it can be one of the best and happiest commitments you can make, for both of you.

Getting the best deal out of pet insurance policies

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There are many good reasons for spending time for investigating in the selection of an ideal pet insurance policy. Some of the reasons are that, the pet owner may be attached to the pet very much emotionally, or the welfare of the pet may make a difference to the pet owner. The health of the pet is very important to the pet owner it is part of the household. Pet insurance serves as a tool that makes sure that the pet does not suffer from any kind of short or long-term illnesses. Financial planning plays a very important role as it may lead to a dangerous situation affecting the pet owner financially in the event of major medical condition when the pet gets injured in an accident or develops a life threatening disease etc. Pet insurance can ease out all sorts of worries. It makes the pet owner free from worrying regarding healthcare, regular checkups, vaccinations, vision checks, gums and teeth checkups etc. Pet insurance serves as an investment to the pet owner in shouldering the financial costs associated with the pet’s health.

Tips for getting a real deal out of insurance policies:

Everyone loves being safe and secure. That is the main reason that pet insurance concept has come into being. It acts as a risk management tool to the pet owner. There are several pet insurance policies with various terms and conditions, to get the real deal out of the insurance policies. The pet owner should go through each term and condition to select the one which will give the maximum benefit out of it. Online services are there to help such people who are confused about the pet insurance policy and the benefit the pet owner can get out of it. Comparisons can be done in terms of premium, health coverage of the pet, if the policy suits the pet etc. as normally pet insurance is offered for cats and dogs. If a person has iguana as his pet, he should look for an insurance company who covers this kind of pet.

Incase if the pet owner has more than one pet, he can very well approach the insurance company which offers discounts on insurance coverage for all his pets. This might be very useful in striking the real deal.

Pets are prone to accidents and illnesses, and the trip to the vet might be very costly affair. Hence pet insurance plays a vital role in providing financial assistance in such cases. Since the vet is the person who is going to treat the pet, it is good to ask him regarding the best insurance policy for the pets. Some vets have their own network of insurance agencies and companies and only work for them. In such cases the vet can provide some valuable information on which insurance company to be approached. Since the vet knows the health condition of the pet, he can suggest the best pet insurance policy which may cover to the maximum. Almost all pet insurance policies require the pet owners to pay the initial amount and then get the reimbursement of the amount they spent on their pets. The vet suggestion may help the pet owner to get the real deal by having the best policy with a good reimbursement plan.

Maltese and children is it a good combination

Maltese are outgoing and intelligent little dogs. Their small stature means that they are great playful companions in any family but read on if you are considering bringing a Maltese into your family.

Maltese love children but they are not a good choice if you have small children in the house. When I say small I mean under around eight years old depending on the maturity of the child. Otherwise they can make great playful and wonderful family members

Children will love their miniature stature; they are little enough to be carried around. But it is because of their size that they are a dangerous combination with little children. Your child will not be able to understand how fragile your Maltese is. It's easy to seriously injure a Maltese by standing on it, or accidentally sitting on it.

The "teacup" variety three pounds and under is a very bad dog to have with children. These dogs are too small and as a result their bones are extremely frail and brittle. It's an unfortunate result of their small size - their bones break easily. They can far too easily be injured accidentally. Standing or sitting on your Maltese can seriously injure your dog.

If you do choose a Maltese you can greatly minimize all these risks by training the dog well as well as teaching your child all about respect for dogs and how to treat them. This will make all the difference!

You will need to teach your children how to treat your Maltese. This includes strictly enforcing a "no roughousing with the dog rule". The kids must learn that your Maltese is fragile and should be treated as such.

If you intend on keeping a Maltese in your home we always recommend some professional training. The cost can be minimal if you take your pet to Pet Smart. Spend some money and make sure that your Maltese is as well socialized as he can be.

Try to get the children involved in the grooming. Maltese need a fair amount of grooming and this is one way you can encourage a great relationship between them. Even small children can gently comb the dogs coat (under supervision!).

As with any household pets; the general principle should be to teach the children to treat all animals with kindness and respect. This is one of the most important life lessons you can impart and the best place to learn is at home.

Just don't leave your children unsupervised around a Maltese. Even though the child may mean well, that will not stop the Maltese from becoming agitated. Some can be a little snappish, so look for a Maltese where the parents are a little mild mannered. This will reduce the risk of any problems. Overall Maltese make a great family pet.

Training your dog with a clicker

In this article I am going to discuss clicker training and its use in training dogs. Most people have heard of clicker training but have no clue what it actually is, in this article I will discuss what clicker training is, how to start using it as well as just how powerful clicker training can be. Most dogs take to clicker training very easily and enjoy learning through the use of a clicker.

What Clicker Training Is

Clicker Training is a positive method of training a dog new behaviors. This means there is no correction for the dog getting anything wrong just reward for when it gets the new behavior right. Unlike some other dog training clicker training does not rely on baiting where the dog is simply bribed into performing a certain behavior. The problem with baiting is that its a very dependent on the owner and takes a lot time to become an independent behavior without many cues. As well as allowing you to teach your dog an independent behavior much quicker than with baiting or other conventional dog training it also allows your dog to learn at a fast rate because its being given much clearer instruction.

How Clicker Training Works

The principle behind clicker training is that the click noise given off by the clicker means correct. So the soon learns that the exact position its in or behavior its performing when the clicker goes off means that’s the correct position/behavior. When a dog is use to clicker training and is clear when its doing the correct behavior new behaviors are formed very quickly.

The main things to consider when clicker training are rate of reinforcement, timing and motivation. Rate of reinforcement is all about how often your reward and how much of a reward you give. When first starting you should reward often and always remember quickly. You need to reward as soon as the dog has performed the correct behavior this way the message that’s right is crystal clear. As your dogs understanding increases the rate of reinforcement can be decreased and your dog should be holding the correct behavior longer. Timing is extremely important in any dog training you must use the clicker the millisecond your dog performs the correct behavior. Clicker training is all about timing the quicker you click and reward the faster the dog will learn the new behavior. The next major thing to consider is motivation without motivation you have nothing a dog must love to work. Unmotivated dogs have no go about them and they simply do not want to work. If a dog does not want to work then you have a serious problem its one hundred percent the training responsibility to make the dog love working. There are many ways to motivate a dog these include treats, toys, fuss and just play in general. Always keep your training short and fun ten to fifteen minutes at a time is perfect any more than this and the dog will get fed up. Remember that you should always finish training when your dog is keen and enjoying the training, never finish when your dog is bored and unmotivated as this produces nothing except a dog who does not enjoy working.

How To Get Started Clicker Training

To get started clicker training all you need is a clicker, a reward and a willing dog. If you have these three things then you have everything you need to start clicker training. Experiment and have fun it’s the best way to learn about clicker training and training dogs in general. There’s no substitute to a good working relationship with your dog. When you have that great relationship you will find training so much easier because you already know exactly how your dog is going to react to everything you do.